Thousands without power, deadly winds and heat smash October records

Millions of Australians remain unsettled on Thursday after harsh and deadly weather ravaged the country’s east coast, with temperatures reaching record highs in parts of NSW and Queensland and winds tearing through parts of Victoria.

Residents were warned to stay indoors as temperatures rose to 40°C on Wednesday, with Penrith Lakes reaching 39.5°C, Canterbury Racecourse reaching 38.1°C and Sydney Harbor hitting 37.7°C.

Conditions in the west of the city were even hotter, with temperatures rising to a sweltering 39.8C at Bankstown Airport.

“Based on preliminary data, records appear to have been broken across much of the Sydney region for the hottest temperatures recorded in October,” Bureau of Meteorology senior meteorologist Angus Hines said.

Despite the scorching heat, large parts of NSW experienced strong winds, toppling trees and causing widespread damage across the state.

NSW SES responded to more than 270 calls on Wednesday, with the biggest impacts felt in Western Sydney.

“Most reports were of typical storm impacts, including downed trees and branches and minor roof damage,” an SES spokesperson told NewsWire.

Fortunately, the temperatures cooled down on Thursday, giving Sydneysiders a much cooler end to the week.

“There was a change in the wind last night which resulted in much cooler air coming in from the south,” Mr Hines said.

“Sydney and other eastern parts could be around 15 degrees colder today than yesterday.”

Although temperatures have cooled in NSW, the same can’t be said for South East Queensland, which continues to feel the burn.

“In fact, today may be the hottest day of the week for South East Queensland,” Mr Hines said.

Brisbane is expected to reach 34C on Thursday, but the bureau warned temperatures could reach as high as 37C in the city’s western suburbs.

These figures are 6 to 8 degrees higher than the October average.

“Heatwave warnings are in place for very large parts of Queensland and the Northern Territory, where warmer than average days and nights will continue for the remainder of this week, into the weekend and even into next week,” Mr Hines said.

Fire bans remain in place across much of the state’s north-east, including Townsville, Burdekin Shire, Whitsunday, Mackay, Isaac region, Central Highlands, North Burnett, Banana Shire, Gladstone and Bundaberg regions.

There is also a total fire ban for residents of Far North Queensland, which covers the Northern Peninsula and Kowanyama Aboriginal Shire.

Extreme wind conditions weren’t just experienced in NSW; Victoria has been torn by strong and dangerous winds reaching speeds in excess of 110 km/h in some areas.

The strongest winds were felt in southern Victoria, but by the afternoon the speed increased and affected much of the state.

Overnight wind speeds reached 130km/h at Wilsons Promontory, 117km/h at Falls Creek and 113km/h at Mt Hotham.

Winds reached 98 km/h at Warrnambool, 96 km/h at St Kilda Port and 94 km/h at Melbourne Airport.

“There were lots of downed trees, power outages, road closures, reports of damage and very difficult conditions in the coastal waters,” Mr. Hines said.

Victoria’s SES responded to more than 1430 calls on Wednesday; More than 1,000 trees were downed and 300 building damages were reported in Melbourne.

The largest reports were in Fawkner, Whitehorse, Whittlesea and Heidelberg.

The wind also caused widespread power outages throughout the city.

A CitiPower spokesperson told NewsWire that more than 20,000 residents lost power throughout the day.

The worst affected areas were Shepparton, Echuca and Maryborough.

Power has since been restored to all customers, the spokesman said.

The weather was so severe it caused the Geelong Cup to be cancelled.

Geelong Racing Club chief executive Luke Rayner said the winds were too strong for the meeting to go ahead and the remaining races were postponed until Thursday.

“We will have the remaining six races, including tomorrow’s Ladbrokes Geelong Cup run, where entry will be absolutely free,” he said.

“If people come back tomorrow with their wristbands, if they want to come back, we’re going to take really good care of those people.”

Unruly conditions also proved deadly, after two men were killed after winds swept them from Frankston Pier into the water.

During an aerial search, the couple was found unresponsive in the water at around 17:00 on Wednesday and they were taken back to shore by crane.

But they could not be saved.

Frankston Mayor Kris Bolam confirmed the couple’s deaths on Wednesday evening.

“We extend our deepest condolences to their families, friends and loved ones,” he said.

“Over the coming summer season we will be strengthening our patrols of the beach, jetty and coastal areas, including additional lifeguard hours, increased signage around hazardous conditions and clear communication when access needs to be restricted.”

Although the weather was particularly harsh on Wednesday, the bureau confirmed the worst was over.

“The weather system that was driving these very strong winds quickly headed east towards New Zealand overnight,” Mr Hines said.

Brisbane residents will have a hot Thursday; The sky will be partly cloudy, there is a chance of light showers and the temperature will be 34C.

The weather in Sydney will be much cooler with south-westerly winds and maximum temperatures of 22C.

It will be mostly sunny in Canberra on Thursday, with temperatures reaching a high of 23C.

Melbourne residents can expect a cloudy day, with a chance of light showers and the mercury is expected to be around 18C.

The weather in Hobart will also be cloudy and rainy, with the highest temperature reaching 16C.

Adelaide residents will see partly cloudy skies, light showers, light winds and a maximum temperature of 20C.

Conditions will also be cloudy in Perth with 21C forecast.

Darwin residents can expect maximum temperatures of 35C with sunny skies and light winds in the afternoon.